


And we will rewrite the world to keep them safe

by Doceo_Percepto, Sp00py



Category: Little Nightmares (Video Game)
Genre: AU, Gen, Runaway Kid lives in this version, influenced by the first and second game, more tags tba
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 05:42:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29505000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doceo_Percepto/pseuds/Doceo_Percepto, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sp00py/pseuds/Sp00py
Summary: After Six leaves the Maw, Runaway Kid commandeers the ship, and turns it into a safe haven for children.
Comments: 18
Kudos: 137





	And we will rewrite the world to keep them safe

Runaway Kid knew what it was, that had left the Guests as nothing more than stinking piles of rotting meat. The same thing that walked away from the Lady’s cold dead body. A child - Six - in a poisonous yellow raincoat. She dismantled the machine that for so long had been systematically slaying children and adults alike. 

RK would have been in her debt for it, too, except he knew the truth. She hadn’t done it for the children; she hadn’t done it because it was good or right. She’d done it for herself. 

He’d met her once, on one of his many escape attempts. Him, as the little boy that had slithered out of the prison enough times to be chained up by his ankle. Her, as the strange wraith who had never been imprisoned on board the Maw, but who was whispered about by all the other children. 

At first he thought that she might be risking life and limb for the sake of the other children. He thought he might be her friend. They worked together, for a short time, long enough for RK to know that Six didn’t have friends, not really. She ignored the dozens of hungry faces peering out from cages. She had a hunger that no normal child should have. The things she found humorous or entertaining left him cold and wary. Soon enough, with capture impending, she traded RK’s freedom for hers.

Her betrayal stung, but he couldn't say it was unexpected. There was something very wrong with Six. After that meeting, RK watched for her warily, as much as he could, and did his best to keep younger, inquisitive children away from her path. He saw her kill Roger, and although he didn’t see what she did to the Lady or the Guests, he did stumble upon the aftermath. Killing the Lady and Guests was probably the best thing she could have done. Her reasons may have been selfish. But the results of her actions, RK admitted, led to the biggest changes onboard the Maw, and the greatest hope that any of the children had seen in a long, long time, if ever. Six, gratefully, departed the Maw of her own volition, as did the Chefs, with nobody to feed and nobody to serve. RK hoped to see neither of them again.

That left the Maw’s huge expanse empty of anything alive but for Nomes, Leeches, and dozens of children. RK got to work right-away. The Nomes were quick to mobilize under his instruction (they’d always been loyal creatures, and unwaveringly kind to anyone kind to them. RK respected them a lot for that, and their ability to stay positive when there was so much darkness). 

They fanned out across the ship, dodging holes, running from leeches, and sidling along heart-stoppingly huge drops, all on a single-minded mission: save every child they could find. Bobby pins were distributed for lock-picking, pantries were raided to begin a store of food, and scuttling nomes burst out of the hidden nooks and crannies of the Maw to get to work. RK, of course, was right alongside them, hunting down all the levers, switches, and dials that powered down the ship’s sinister features, such as the energy-powered doors, and electrified bars. 

Cage after cage burst open. Door after door thrown wide. Tiny feet bustled in the halls, grimy faces wide-eyed with awe and disbelief. After all this time, change. Were they really free? Was it really over? Laughing in delight, RK told one child after another that yes, the danger was past. All the adults were gone! The Maw was theirs! 

It was the happiest moment onboard anyone had experienced, but of course every kid had questions. Why were they free? Where was the Janitor? What had happened?

RK liked to give credit where credit was due, but Six wouldn't care either way. Nor was she the kind of person he wanted them looking up to. “All that matters is we’re free now,” he settled upon, and swiftly moved the subject past. Little did he know the amount of rumors and conjecture that vague answer would inspire, but then again, little did he know just how much the Maw would transform under his influence. 

He had only been thinking of the imminent present: release all the kids. It was sheer dumb luck that he’d been able to enlist the nomes and spearhead the jailbreak; he had no plans after that. Yet kids started coming up to him with new problems. 

Some needed first aid. Many had questions. Many were tired, and wanted comfortable places to sleep. Several groups had to be ushered away from the parts of the Maw they shouldn't be in, for their own health and safety. It fell to RK to run left and right, fielding all the questions, concerns, and demands.

Organization became paramount. He needed more than just the nomes. Three kids volunteered to assist - Victoria and Irma, who both seemed older than most of the others, and had clearly been tending to some of the youngest, as well as a very short gender ambiguous kid who introduced themself as ‘The Captain’ and refused to not be involved. The four of them, along with the nomes, divided the Maw into two main sections: areas safe for kids to be in, and areas unsafe for them, whether by particularly bad leech infestations, or the decomposing corpses within. 

Victoria and a boy named Twenty Six (RK tried not to judge for the unintentional association) flooded the Janitor’s quarters and surrounding areas to seize anything soft and fluffy they could find, as well as a collection of toys, all of which was brought to the first floor of the Lady’s residence, forming a mountain of coziness that overflowed onto the stairs.

Irma took over any and all first aid-related issues, citing a surprising extensive amount of experience treating the wounds of unlucky children. She raided closets and the infirmary for supplies, set up shop out of an expansive closet, and attended to every child that came for help. 

The Captain, meanwhile, hijacked the entire kitchen area, employing dozens of hands to move out anything that was meat and throw it overboard. Water and fresh food were distributed among all, while the Captain stood on a box and looked justifiably proud. 

RK, meanwhile, was beginning to grasp the challenges of their new situation. Liberating the children was one thing. But what was the next step? Returning to Mainland? RK had never been there himself, but he’d heard stories about a nightmare landscape crawling with monsters, so many that they were tearing each other apart along with their children. That didn’t seem like any place to go. 

The more he thought about it, the more obvious the answer. Mainland wasn’t safe. Most places weren’t safe, he’d wager - they were all swarmed with adults and monsters, which were effectively the same thing, except for the rare monster that hadn’t grown up yet (RK thought of Six and then did his best not to). 

So if everywhere but the Maw was infested… then why not stay on the Maw? Make it their own? These were kids supplanted from whatever paltry home they’d ever had, maybe they could make a new home here.

RK stewed over the idea. Then he brought it to Victoria, who agreed with an easy acceptance that made him feel like it really was a good idea. She had a calmness to her, but she knew how to speak up, unlike so many of the other kids. She would have told him if it was stupid, or if there was some glaring flaw. Feeling more confident, he went to the next logical choice.

He brought it to Irma. When he mentioned the Mainland, all the color drained from her face, but she visibly held her tongue until he’d finished. At that point, she let out the longest sigh. And that was how RK learned she used to live there, fighting to survive in a crumbling city, where adults were eaten by TVs and a tower’s red light glared across the land. She would be happy never setting foot there, again. RK assured her she wouldn’t have to. After all, she’d been lured to the Maw with promises of safety, but now it really was safe.

Finally, he broached it with the Captain. They had no opinion on land, except that they couldn’t be captain of it, so why bother?

Everyone was in unanimous agreement. Nowhere was safe unless they made it so, and what better place than the Maw? Most of the work had been done for them already anyhow, what with the 'mysterious' deaths of most of the adults, and the departure of any others.

RK felt more confident about the decision with their support. Why not, after all? It was about time the Maw was ruled by children instead of adults. 

* * *

  
  
  
“And we’ll take two hundred fifty pounds of cheese,” Victoria said into the transceiver. She sounded the most adult-like, so was the obvious choice to pretend to be an adult. A voice spoke back, she made a sound of agreement, then signed off and signaled to RK. He flipped the switch on the radio’s box, powering it back down.

Ever since taking over the management of the Maw, RK and the others realized they were going to need an external source of food. That’s when Irma had conjured the devious idea of ordering food from the outside, just like the Lady had, and having it delivered right to their doorstep, so to speak. That’s what they’d been doing ever since, funding the orders by selling off various expensive trinkets and decor the Lady had collected.

If any delivery people questioned why it was children meeting them at the gangplank, then the reply was easy: the Lady was much too busy, and had sent enslaved children to do the task for her. It was believable enough to work again and again, and they’d just wrapped up their next order tidily.

“You got all that?” RK asked. 

“Yup, just-” Sitting a few feet away, legs dangling over the counter, Twenty Six made a few more computations in the large, green ledger, then closed it and set it aside, nodding. He hopped off the edge, followed by Victoria and RK. Twenty Six, true to his unusually long name, had an exceptional talent for numbers. He kept impeccable track of all the ship’s finances, and was invaluable to their continued functioning. The second part of his name still sometimes gave RK pause, even after the two years they’d been running the Maw, but then again, RK wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to hear the name Six the same. 

“We have funds for at least two more orders without selling,” Twenty Six announced.

RK took the lead, leaving the two of them to discuss the inventory as he kept an eye out. Though there were no more adults in the Maw, old habits died hard, and there were still other dangers. Leeches, holes, you name it.

“Even if we get vegetables, next time?” Victoria asked. “Something besides carrots and potatoes?”

RK didn’t have to see Twenty Six to know he was scrunching up his face at the idea of veggies. “I’ll work it into the budget,” he said, though.

They pulled handkerchiefs up around their noses as they skirted the guest area, still stinking of rot and death from the massacre.

Flashlights lit up as they entered deeper, darker areas, scanning for leeches. The trio marched on paths marked with symbols and arrows, most drawn by RK in his explorations of the Maw, until they arrived back in the Fort. RK knocked once, four times, then twice. A click, and the door was pushed open.

The Lady’s residence had changed so much, so quickly, as the Fort was cobbled together. It no longer resembled that darkly opulent nightmare RK had had to traverse, hunted by shadows and the Lady. Now, it had been emptied of its riches and was soft and light and full of laughter. Its full name was the Blanket Fort, and true to that name, it consisted of as many pillows, blankets, and mattresses the kids had been able to find. Sheets hung between areas, sectioning off as many individual rooms as possible. Nomes and children wandered around, playing games or relaxing.

Irma, who always took the watch when RK was out, according to Birdy who heard it from Tidus, waved them through, then pulled the door closed and locked it again.

“Is Team Delta back yet?” RK asked as she fell into step beside him. She shook her head, the trinkets she’d started knotting into her hair clacking gently. “When did they go out?”

“Three hours ago. It’s getting harder and harder to find things to sell. So much of the ship is just trash.”

RK felt a little insulted on behalf of the nomes, who worked hard maintaining the ship, but they could only do so much, so he had to admit that she wasn’t _wrong._ The Maw was colossal in size, but much of that was yawning empty space, rotted wooden platforms, and, on the lower levels, flooded hallways. Simply put, they were beginning to run out of valuable things to sell. 

“So…” RK prompted, already knowing where this conversation was going and not liking it. From her expression, Irma wasn’t thrilled, either.

She took a deep breath. “We might have to go to the Mainland.”

“Damn,” RK said.

“Damn,” she echoed.

They fell into silence as they sat down in Irma’s closet, both praying to whatever might listen that the other kids returned with something great. Something _expensive_. Something that would keep them off dry land.

When, another hour later, Team Delta finally came back coated in gunk and disgruntled, RK’s heart dropped. Two more orders, Twenty Six had said. Growing kids ate a lot. That wouldn’t last nearly long enough to figure out something else. There was only one option left.

RK caught Irma’s eye above the clustered kids as they emptied pockets of change and fluff. They shared worried looks.

After two years safely isolated at sea, the Maw was going to shore.


End file.
